


The Proposal

by NewImagination



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Humor
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-27
Updated: 2016-06-11
Packaged: 2018-05-23 11:16:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6114811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NewImagination/pseuds/NewImagination
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She isn’t sure what's happening, and doesn't have time to debate the options before Lexa is stepping towards her and changes the tone of her voice to something she can honestly say she’s never heard in her entire 2 years of knowing her. Something soft, almost affectionate. </p><p>“I guess now is a good a time to tell you gentleman that this won’t be an issue for much longer because you see...” Lexa reaches Clarke and loops their arms together and rubs her shoulder. Clarke can only stand still in place, wondering what in the hell is about to go down, while at the same time willing every fiber of her being to ignore the sparks that seem to fly when Lexa makes contact with her body.</p><p>“Clarke and I are getting married.” She momentarily rests her head on Clarke’s shoulder and the blonde thinks Oscar nominations are in order for the stoic, unsurprised expression she is able to maintain on her own face.</p><p>Of all the things Clarke expected to hear, that did not even make the top 5 guesses. Or even the top 50. She thinks it’s a good time to start yelling timber, because shit is going down. </p><p>*Or - The Proposal AU. It will be based on the movie but obviously exponentially more gay.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Business Arrangement

**Author's Note:**

> I was watching this movie over the weekend and thought it would be even better if it was about lesbians. So here we are. The first chapter will be pretty much on par with the movie but as we move along I will be changing some things around but general plot points remain. Fake dating tropes galore.

Her job sucks. 

And Clarke thinks that’s putting it mildly. Long hours with little reward (unless you count having a ridiculously chiseled-from-the-Gods hot, but completely unattainable boss a reward) but she keeps telling herself to stick it out. Put in the time, and good things will finally happen. She moved out to New York for a reason, a dream, and she wasn’t about to give up on it now. Not after literal years worth of mornings that went all too much like this. 

She knew she shouldn’t have pushed that snooze button a second time. She knew it would cost her, yet here she was. She had practically sprinted the entire distance from her apartment to the Starbucks on 5th, her usual stop before destination: Hell. The fact that she is incredibly winded from the trek reminds her she really needs to make more time to get back to her work out routine. She’s barely inside the doors when panic sets in as she’s presented with a mile long line of people waiting to order their bullshit drinks. She wonders whatever happened to just enjoying a nice black coffee the way nature intended. 

“Clarke, I have your order ready for you” 

The sound of the Barista’s voice is practically like heaven right now because it buys her precious time away from waiting in line. She knows she should remember this girl’s name by now, because she’s definitely heard it many times, but she’s too panicked and rushed to process anything other than getting the hell to work before her boss does. 

“You’re a life saver! Thank you so much!” Clarke replies while sliding a $20 across the counter. “Don’t worry about the change because I’m pretty sure I owe you my life on the silver platter my boss would have chopped me up and served me on.” and smiles towards the Barista-that-shall-be-named-later before bolting back towards the door and continue her sprint down the street, carefully balancing her drinks in hand. 

She considers it a small success when she makes it into the elevator both on time and having not spilled a drop. She smiles and says a quick hello to the people up the elevator and lets out a loud, winded breath. She reaches the 10th floor of Mount Weather Publishing and is almost ready to pat herself on the back for a job well done while power walking towards her office before the other shoe drops. Before she can even process what has happened, one of the drinks she had been holding onto like a lifeline comes crashing into her chest as she bumps straight into the mail clerk and his cart. 

“MOTHERRRRRRR OF GOD NO. NO. NOT TODAY, SATAN.” she practically yells. She gets a confused look from the mail Clerk before he shrugs his shoulders and continues pushing his cart and walking away. 

Her white shirt is now covered in coffee and her boss will arrive any minute. 

She tosses the spilt coffee cup in the trash while she beelines her way to Raven’s desk.

“Raven, take off your shirt.” she huffs, equal parts pissed and frantic. 

“Listen Clarke I told you, if you want to see me naked you’ll have to get me drunk.”

Clarke rolls her eyes and makes note to retaliate later. “Seriously Raven I need your shirt before el diablo gets here and in exchange I will give you anything you want-”

“Anything?” Raven interrupts with a wink

“-of a non sexual nature is what the last part of that line was. Now hurry up you have 5 seconds to name your price before I go to the next person. I’m a woman on the run.”

“Ok ok give me a set of our corporate tickets to the next Yankees game and you can even have the underwear off my ass” Raven is already standing up to walk towards the washroom before Clarke responds, knowing full well she’s won.

“Deal! Now do me a favour and put a little hustle into your step so I can get changed and make it in time.” Clarke responds as she’s pushing Raven’s back with her hand. 

Clarke barely manages to straighten the shirt over her sides before she receives a notification on her phone.

She’s here! Time’s up

She grabs the coffee off of the counter and makes her way towards the door, shouting a quick thank you at Raven before power walking down the hallway. 

Seriously. Her job sucks. 

\-------------------------

Lexa is a morning person and a creature of habit. Awake after the first alarm and running 5k on her treadmill every morning while reading the latest manuscript proposal, she can safely say she has her shit together. Her condo is always spotless, her clothes perfectly ironed not a hair on her head out of place. She knows she comes across intimidating, cold, humorless and she’s pretty sure most people at work are terrified of her but she’s worked too damn hard to get here to care about what others think. 

She likes order in her life, and keeping people at arms length guarantees her ability to maintain it. She’s learned what happens when you let someone disrupt that order, and she’s not keen to repeat mistakes. Weakness is not a word in Lexa Wood’s vocabulary. 

She makes the familiar trip from her Manhattan condo to the Mount Weather Publishing building and holds her head high as she walks the familiar stretch of hallway towards her office. She received awkward “hello”s and head nods from employees who look more scared than happy to see her. Including Raven, who she stops momentarily in front of to take a double look. 

“Raven, did you not think clean clothing was a requirement of your job?”

Raven looks down at Clarke’s coffee stained shirt she is wearing and looks back up towards Lexa with a nervous smile. 

“Yea....I sort of had a little accident. I will head home at lunch to change, don’t worry.”

Lexa gives her a final glare before continuing towards her office, where her assistant Clarke is waiting for her. She knows she shouldn’t notice these things, but she can’t help being momentarily thrown off by how attractive Clarke is every time she sees her. And she’s seen her everyday for 2 years. It’s more troubling than anything so as she always does, she quickly pushes her thoughts aside.

“Morning! Here’s your coffee Lexa.” the blonde says as she passes the coffee towards her. “Linda called to confirm the publishing date for “The Wild” is still set for August 8th” 

“Linda...the one with the ugly hands?”

“Yes, so you keep saying.”

“Right, tell her I’ll call her tomorrow for an update. The last chapter still needs some rework, it’s barely short of a disaster. I don’t know how it squeaked through.” Lexa responds and she takes a seat in her desk and begins assembling her manuscripts in careful piles.

“Ok, will do. You have the staff meeting at 9:30 this morning, Cage and Dante want to see you in their office as soon as possible. Oh and your immigration lawyer called again and says its extremely urgent so - “

“Tell them to reschedule for tomorrow and don’t forward their calls today. I don’t have the time to be dealing with that right now. Oh and call PR and tell them to draft a press release, Jaha is doing Oprah” 

Lexa notices Clarke raise her eyebrows briefly. “Wow! Nicely done boss.”

Lexa lets out a huff. “If I want your praise, I will ask for it.” She goes take a sip out of her coffee when she notices the writing on the cup and holds it up at eye level to inspect it. 

“Um Clarke, who is Niylah and why does she want me to call her?”

Clarke barely misses a beat before replying. “That’s because that was originally my coffee.”

“And why exactly would I be drinking your coffee, Clarke?” She raises a brow towards the blonde, who fidgets slightly with the stack of papers in her hands.

“Because your coffee spilled” 

“I see.” Lexa pauses to take a sip from the cup, Clarke still frozen in place. “So you drink unsweetened cinnamon soy lattes while picking up Barista’s at Starbucks?”

“I do. It’s like Christmas in a cup. I wouldn’t possibly order the same coffee as you just in case I spilled one, that would be-”

The phone starts ringing and Clarke walks towards it

“-pathetic...Hello Ms. Woods office. Murphy? Ok sure she will be right there.” she hangs up the receiver and looks towards Lexa. “Why does Murphy think we are going to his office?”

Lexa doesn’t respond, instead she pick her coffee back up off her desk and starts walking out the door, Clarke following closely behind. 

“So have you had a chance to read that manuscript I gave you last week?” Clarke asks, a slight hint of hopefulness in her voice Lexa can detect. 

“I don’t have time to be reading your friend’s pet projects, Clarke. Besides, graphic novels aren’t really the business Mount Weather prides itself on”

“Listen, Lexa, I have read thousands of manuscripts and this is the only one I’ve ever given you to review. Believe me when I say it’s incredible. The story makes the drawings come to life.”

“I don’t have time to discuss this right now, Clarke. And for the record, I do think you order the same coffee as me in case you spill one and it is in fact, pathetic.” the brunette glances back towards Clarke with a raised brow and a slight smirk. 

“Pathetic or impressive?” the blonde retorts. 

“I’d be more impressed if you didn’t spill it in the first place. Now don’t say anything in here, just observe and follow me out when I leave.”

Lexa pushes the glass door open to Murphy’s office. He glances up from his computer with an expression that reads annoyance. Lexa thinks she will take just a little bit of satisfaction in this moment that is about to transpire. She really hates this guy.

“Ah, our fearless leader and her liege.”

Lexa thinks she catches Clarke glaring towards Murphy at his remark, but she pays little attention. 

“Listen, Murphy I’m going to cut to the chase here. I’m letting you go.”

Murphy scoffs before standing up from his desk. “What the hell are you talking about, Lexa?”

“You didn’t get Jaha to do Oprah.”

“I have told you that’s impossible. Jaha is a crazy quack who barely leaves his house except to talk about the City of Light, let alone doing publicized interviews.” Murphy's tone is getting defensive and Lexa knows this is going to go down exactly how she anticipated. 

“Oh really? Then how come I was able to get him to agree to it? You didn’t even call him, did you? Look, I know he’s scary...for you. But if you’re not willing to do what it takes to get the job done, I’m afraid there’s no room for you here at Mount Weather. But I’m willing to give you two months pay while you look for other employment and you can tell everyone you resigned, ok?”

Lexa doesn’t wait for a reply before she starts to make her way out of Murphy’s office, Clarke once again following closely behind. 

“What’s he doing?” the brunette asks. 

“He’s pacing around...his eyes are sort of bulging...oh god here he comes...”

Murphy bursts out of his office and points his finger towards Lexa and starts shouting. 

“YOU HEARTLESS BITCH!!! Just because you have no semblance of a life outside this office, doesn’t mean you can fire me!!! You don’t think I see what you’re doing here? You’re threatened by me and think you can just get rid of me.”

Lexa makes a move to step closer into Murphy’s space before carefully replying with a calm, collected tone. “Listen carefully Murphy. I didn’t fire you because I feel threatened by you. I fired you because you’re lazy, arrogant and incompetent and if you say another word I will have building security escort you out and Clarke over here will film it with her iPhone and post it on that internet site...was was it again?”

“YouTube” Clarke responds, not having moved from her spot. 

“Right. YouTube. So if I were you Murphy, I’d quietly pack up my belongings and leave.”

She turns on her heels and continues walking down the hallway towards Cage and Dante’s office. 

\----------------

Clarke is thankful she was not on the receiving end of that shit storm. She follows Lexa quietly towards Dante and Cage’s office while the brunette recites instructions.

“We will have to review all of the manuscripts Murphy had in play this weekend so we can sort through them Monday morning.”

“Oh this weekend?” Clarke suddenly thinks this trip home she had planned is not going to happen.

“Yes, is that a problem, Clarke?” Lexa is stopped outside of the office door and turns to look towards the blonde. 

“Well it’s just that it’s my Grandma’s 70th birthday so I was going to be flying home..but it’s fine I’ll cancel it. You’re probably saving me from a weekend of misery anyway.”

Lexa rolls her eyes. “Come and get me in 10 minutes with some kind of urgent call, ok? I don’t have time to be wasting in here all day.” and before Clarke can confirm Lexa slips into the office. 

She takes the 10 minutes of freedom to call her best friend. She almost feels bad for constantly venting about her shitty job until she remembers it’s sort of Octavia’s job as her best friend to listen, so she dials anyway while wandering through the halls. 

“Hey Octavia, I’ve got a 10 minute break from servitude so I thought I’d call my MVB”

_“Clarke, I told you ‘Most Valuable Bitch” is not a thing. Stop trying to make it a thing”_

“Don’t tell me how to live my life Octavia” Clarke retorts in the most sarcastic and dramatic tone she can summon. 

_“If you actually listened when I told you how to live your life you’d be back home instead of purgatory with Satan. Seriously Clarke, I don’t know how you do it.”_

“I’ve worked too hard to give up now, O. I’m so close to that promotion and if I leave now this will all have been for nothing.”

_“Sometimes I secretly wonder if the reason you stay is because you have a giant lady boner for your smoking hot boss. Even if she is the devil incarnate, she’s seriously hot.”_

Clarke scoffs. “Please, I’m not that much of a glutton for punishment. Her impeccable jaw line and piercing eyes aren’t enough to deal with her icy cold demeanor. Plus, I’m pretty sure she’s going to make me miss Grammy’s birthday this weekend, so she’s still on the major shit list.”

_“Clarke no! You can’t miss the party. Your grandma will be devastated. You haven’t made it home in so long.”_

Clarke quickly checks her watch and realizes she should probably circle back to Dante’s office to orchestrate Lexa’s escape because if she’s learned anything about Lexa in 2 years, it’s that when she says 10 minutes, what she really means is 5.

“I know, trust me I hate this. I’ll call her later and explain. There’s nothing I can do about it right now. She literally just fired someone 10 minutes ago and I’ll be next if I try and push back on this. I’ll make it up with another trip soon. But I gotta go now, duty calls. Love ya bitch”

She quickly hangs up and pushes her way into the office. She suddenly regrets her over punctuality because it appears she has walked into the middle of a particularly awkward conversation. 

“Look Lexa, remember last month when we told you not to fly to Germany while your Visa application was being submitted? Do you remember what you did?” Dante is speaking, hand covering his forehead, fingers on his temples as though he’s just been drained of his energy from this conversation. 

“Of course I remember, I flew to Germany to save Marcus Kane from jumping ship to Viking. I did what had to be done.”

“Well the United States government has other ideas. You’re being deported, Lexa. Which means you have to leave the country for at least one year while you resubmit your application.”

Clarke knows this conversation isn’t about her, but she can’t help but feel a blow to her stomach at what she’s hearing. If Lexa leaves now, she can pretty much kiss her promotion goodbye. She would have to start from ground zero, if she’s lucky enough to even keep her job. This was far from ideal.

Lexa lets out a maniacal chuckle. “Deported? I’m not even an immigrant, I’m from Canada for christ sake! You know what, fine. It’s fine, I’ll just work out of Toronto for a year until everything is approved and I can move back to New York.”

Cage lets out a sigh. “No Lexa, you don’t understand. If you’re deported you cant work for a United States company. We would have to let you go and make Murphy Editor In Chief in your place.”

“Murphy? You mean that imbecile I just fired? You can’t be serious, Cage.”  
“He is the only one with enough experience in the building to fill your shoes -” Cage is interrupted by Dante. “Look Lexa. We are desperate to have you stay, but there’s just no way around this, I’m sorry.”

Clarke takes this moment to interrupt and announce her presence, attempting to break the awkward tension in the room and pull Lexa out as requested. 

“Hey, Ms Woods I’m sorry to interrupt but Jaha is on the line and I told him you were otherwise engaged, but he said it was urgent so...”

Clarke pauses when she sees the way Lexa is staring at her. She isn’t sure what is happening, and doesn't have time to debate the options before Lexa is stepping towards her and changes the tone of her voice to something she can honestly say she’s never heard in her entire 2 years of knowing her. Somethings soft, almost affectionate. 

“I guess now is a good a time to tell you gentleman that this won’t be an issue for much longer because you see...” Lexa reaches Clarke and loops their arms together and rubs her shoulder. Clarke can only stand frozen in place, wondering what in the hell is about to go down while at the same time willing every fiber of her being to ignore the sparks that seem to fly when Lexa makes contact with her body.

“Clarke and I are getting married.” She momentarily rests her head on Clarke’s shoulder and the blonde thinks Oscar nominations are in order for the stoic, unsurprised expression she is able to maintain on her face.

Of all the things Clarke expected to hear, that did not even make the top 5 guesses. Or even the top 50. She thinks it’s a good time to start yelling timber, because shit is going down. 

Cage shifts his head backwards while a surprised expression takes over his face. “You and Clarke are getting married? Isn’t she your Assistant?”

“Executive Assistant” Lexa corrects, and right now Clarke wonders what the hell difference that makes in the context of this monumentally fucked up conversation. “Do you have a problem with lesbians, Cane?” Lexa adds. 

Dante is quick to jump in, “No, No of course not Lexa, we have an open, accepting environment here at Mount Weather. We are just a little surprised is all. This is the first we are hearing of your relationship.”

Clarke wants to scream “Me too, the fuck?” but instead she stands still, feeling fire beneath her skin where Lexa’s hand is now holding hers.

“Well you know how it goes, late nights at the office, business trips, weekend book fairs, we just couldn’t help but fall in love. Couldn’t fight it. Just can’t help fighting a love like ours. Isn’t that right, Clarke?”

Clarke can only nod, fearing any attempt at using her voice will give her away. 

“See, we’re happy. You should be happy for us. Aren’t you happy?”

Dante steps forward to shake Lexa and Clarke’s hands. “Congratulations. Of course we are happy for you both. Just make it legal and sort this mess out, hm?” 

“Of course. We were actually planning to get married this weekend for Clarke’s Grandmother’s birthday in...”

“Sitka” Clarke barely squeeks out. 

“Sitka” Lexa repeats. 

“Alaska” Clarke finishes. 

“Alaskaaaa....” Lexa repeats while giving Clarke a momentary side eye glare. 

Lexa regains her composure and makes their exit. “Thank you gentleman and apologies for wasting your time with this matter. It will all be sorted very soon.”

\------------------

Clarke walks in stunned silence all the way back to Lexa’s office. She closes the door behind them and waits for Lexa to say something, anything. But instead she’s met with silence at Lexa continues on her day as though nothing is different and starts making notes on the open manuscript sitting on her desk. 

Clarke breaks the silence threatening to swallow her whole. “I’m sorry, but what was that? We’re getting married now, are we?” 

“Relax, Clarke. I’m doing both of us a favour here. You need this as much as I do.” Lexa responds, not once looking up from her writing.

“Really? I do? Please, do enlighten me oh great Canadian citizen.”

Lexa puts down her pen and glances up towards Clarke, who instantly feels heat rising in the pit of her stomach as she remembers what Lexa’s hand felt like in hers. 

“They were going to make Murphy the new Editor in Chief, which means you would have lost you job the second he took over, which means you would have lost everything you’ve worked the last two years for. Besides, what’s the big deal? We will spend the allotted amount of time married and get a quicky divorce and be done with it.”

Clarke shakes her head. “No. Lexa, no. I’m not doing this. This is illegal, first of all, and second of all have you thought about the logistics of this? Pretending to be married means we have to fake an entire life together, living arrangements, social outings, do I need to go on?”

“Please ,Clarke. The government is too busy looking for terrorists, not book publishers. We have both worked too hard to submit defeat to some simple logistical inconveniences.”

Clarke is pacing around the office now, trying to absorb everything thundering around her head. 

“I want you to ask me nicely. No, scratch that. I want to you properly propose to me.” She stops her pacing in the middle of the room and positions her hands resting on her hips. 

“Excuse me?”

“This is one of those rare moments in life where my boss, the boss who I’ve basically been in a life of indentured servitude for, needs a monumental favour from me and I’m going to cash in on this potential and make you propose to me properly. If we’re doing this fake relationship thing, we’re doing it starting now. So if you want your future bride to make it to the alter I want to see you on your knees.”

She realizes the sexual overtones of her last line before they words even finish leaving her mouth, but it’s too late to take it back so she sticks it out with confidence. She has the upper hand on her boss for the first time in her life, and she’s cashing in. 

Lexa stands up from her chair, eyes never leaving Clarke’s as she slowly walks towards her. She still doesn’t drop her eye contact as she drops to both knees in front of Clarke. 

“Clarke Griffin, I’d like to ask you to be my wife. I swear fealty to you and vow to treat your needs as my own, your family as my family.”

Clarke extends her hand towards Lexa and waits for her to take a hold if it. That nagging feeling of being engulfed in flames creeping up her arm once again when their skin makes contact. Highly inconvenient.

“Good touch with the fealty comment, a good ol’ nod to the slavery jokes I now have confirmation you’ve overheard me make about us. But that was actually super sweet, so I will accept your proposal. But I do have one condition.”

Lexa removes her hand from Clarke’s and though she’d never admit it, Clarke misses the contact. 

“What is the condition?”

“You need to read and approve the manuscript I gave you, and give me that promotion to Editor I’ve been working my ass off for. I would bet my job on the fact that you won’t be disappointed with either”

“I’m not exchanging a book publishing and promotion for a fake marriage, Clarke.”

“Well that’s funny Lexa, because from where I’m standing, you don’t have much of an option, do you?”

Lexa inhales sharply and let’s out a calm, collected breath. “Very well. You have a deal, Clarke.”

“Great. I guess you better start packing your bags, because we’re going to Alaska, wifey.”


	2. Inconveniences

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Suave Clarke and internally panicking Lexa

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took a little longer than I meant it to because I was in a state of "what in the fresh hell was that" since the shit storm that was 307. I'm just going to go ahead and pretend that episode didn't happen. Anyway, here's the chapter and hopefully it helps distract you reading it as much as it did writing it. I'm living in denial forever. 
> 
> Apologies in advance if there's mistakes. I'm in mourning and distracted.

Lexa hears a knock at her door, but before she can answer it she hears the lock turn and the door open, revealing a flash of blonde hair almost hidden behind a stack of boxes threatening to topple over. 

“Clarke, what are you doing here and how do you have a key? And what on earth are in those boxes?” Lexa questions as she decides to grab half the stack of boxes from Clarke’s struggling arms. 

“Thanks for grabbing those.” Clarke responds as she drops the rest of the boxes with a huff and kicks the door closed with her foot. “Don’t you remember giving me a key to your condo when you asked me to deliver your dry cleaning, water your plants while you were away on business and countless other non work related errands because apparently I live a life of perpetual ass kissing?”

Lexa rolls her eyes. “That doesn’t explain what you’re doing here right now with all these boxes, Clarke.” 

“Well, Lexa. In case you have forgotten, you and I are apparently in love and getting married. Unless you have found another poor sucker to take my place, though I doubt they’d be as good looking. Just saying.” Clarke flashes a wink, and Lexa forces every fiber of her being to listen to her command not to let the redness creep onto her cheeks.

“I haven’t forgotten, but what does that have to do with the boxes littered in my hallway?”

“Well, how do you expect we are going to pull this off living separately? Part of the ‘logistical inconveniences’ you didn’t want to submit defeat to involves us living together as a fake, happily married couple. And since your place is about five times bigger than mine and a hell of a lot fancier, I’m moving in. Hence the boxes. I’ve packed my essentials and the essential cat supplies.”

“I don’t have a cat.”

“Well you do now. His name is Titus and he’s a bald cat so you don’t have to worry about the hair. I’ve arranged for Raven to come and check in on him while we’re in Alaska.” 

“Reyes? Please tell me you didn’t give Raven a key to my condo Clarke.” 

Lexa has her answer once she notices Clarke looking up to the ceiling before turning around to unstack her boxes. She takes a sharp inhale and reminds herself she doesn’t have a choice. She needs this arrangement to work. She just hopes she doesn’t lose her sanity in the process. 

“I can already tell you’re going to make a wonderful wife.”

Clarke is quick to turn back towards Lexa with a grin. “I secretly love it when you’re a sarcastic asshole because it reminds me that deep, deep down in there somewhere there is a sense of humor demanding release.”

“Five minutes as my fake wife and you’re already bordering on employment termination territory. Do you always call your bosses assholes?” 

“Only my favorite ones who are monumentally in my debt.” Clarke turns back to pick up one of her boxes. “Now that this is settled, can you point me to where you’d like me to put my things?”

Maybe it was the moment of panic that suddenly swept through her, or maybe it was the fact that she caught herself feeling flustered, but whatever it was it was responsible for the only words Lexa thought to let escape her mouth.

“I only have one bed”

The smile and quiet chuckle that Clarke let out made Lexa sink further into her instant feeling of regret. Hardly the response she intended. 

“Don’t worry Lexa, I think I can manage keeping my hands to myself if you can.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, of course. This is strictly a business arrangement, nothing more.” The redness in her cheeks she willed her body to suppress moments earlier had betrayed her, she was sure of it, and her embarrassment was the direct cause of her tone being harsher than was necessary. She was not going to let Clarke Griffin get to her. 

“Right. Of course. Anyway, we can argue over the sleeping arrangements more later because we leave for Alaska tomorrow morning. Which means today we need to head to the immigration office and start the process of trying to convince them we aren’t committing a felony.” 

Lexa doesn’t fail to notice the way Clarke’s eyes drop and shoulders slump. She had just effectively killed the lightness of the mood between them with her harshness. She wonders for a moment how the hell all of this is going to work when she can’t even handle letting her guard down for one second, let alone months of having to live and work with Clarke. It’s been years since she’s had to share her space so closely with anyone, and she isn’t sure she even remembers how. Being alone has been all she’s known, and after heartbreak it’s all she’s been telling herself she wants. 

“Ok I’ll grab my bag and we can go. We will deal with this mess when we return.”

\------------------

They walk up to the entrance doors of the immigration office and Clarke takes in a deep breath. 

“Ok so I think it would be best if you let me do most of the talking when it comes to the relationship questions.”

Lexa raises an eyebrow in question towards Clarke. “Oh you do, do you? And why exactly is that?”

“Because I know virtually everything there is to know about you, while I’m going to make an educated bet that you know little to nothing about me in regards to anything outside of work.” 

Lexa scoffs. “Please, Clarke. Don’t presume to know me so well.”

Clarke stops their movements by taking Lexa’s hand and leading her off to the side of the stairs just outside the doors. 

“Oh really? Ok, Lexa, how’s this - I know you avoid dairy because you have an intolerance for lactose and it makes your stomach cramp up for hours. Your favorite colour is blue and you almost always try and incorporate it into something you’re wearing. When you’re stressed, you get a massive craving for sweets which usually a white chocolate raspberry scone can cure. You also have this thing you do when you’re deep in thought where you twirl your pen around between your fingers and bite at your bottom lip. You’re a closet Adele fan that likes to sing along to her songs when you think no one is around to hear you. And by the way, you’re voice is actually amazing. I could seriously continue forever, so please stop me if you think I’ve sufficiently convinced you that I’m the only hope in hell we have in making this ruse convincing.” 

Lexa is staring back at Clarke with a look of surprise. Clarke knows she may have to answer questions later about why she seems to pay such close attention to her boss, but for now she’s just hoping she’s said enough to convince Lexa to let her take the lead. 

“I...you’re right. I’m suddenly feeling a little bit guilty that I haven’t taken the same level of care in learning details about your life.”

“Don’t be. You’re my boss and to your credit, you probably never anticipated having to be fake married to me. Besides, I don’t know anything about any past or present personal relationships of yours, which I’m assuming is deliberate because you’re a very private person, so I’m going to have to wing that part but I’m a great bullshitter so we will be fine.”

Lexa nods her head in response and Clarke takes that as her cue to get this show on the road. 

“Ok, let’s do this.”

They are lead into the office of someone named Charles Pike and take their seats in front of the desk. Clarke flashes him a smile while Lexa shakes his hand and he maintains an emotionless expression.

“So, I understand you ladies are getting married and applying for American citizenship, correct?”

“That’s correct, sir. Lexa and I are getting married this weekend in Sitka actually. It’s my grandmothers birthday weekend so the whole family will be there. We’re very excited”

“I see. You having been working for Lexa as her assistan-”

“Executive Assistant” Lexa chimes in. Clarke is still seriously wondering what difference that makes and why Lexa feels the need to correct it every time.

“My apologies, Executive Assistant. How long have you two been romantically involved?”

“Well we started our relationship in an official capacity about 6 months ago, unofficially a little longer than that, if you get where I’m heading with this.” 

Out of the corner of her eye Clarke can see Lexa leaning her head down and hiding her forehead behind her hand, rubbing her temples. 

“Care to elaborate on how this relationship started and why you want to get married? I’m sure you can understand that this entire situation seems a bit too coincidental from a timing perspective given the recent rejection of Miss Wood’s visa application.”  
Clarke catches Lexa about to start to speak and jumps in to cut her off. 

“Well Mr. Pike, firstly I’d like to point out the obvious fact that you have eyes, correct?”

“Miss Griffin, I don’t see where yo-”

“Because you have eyes you can clearly see my first point, which is that Lexa is absolutely stunning. I mean, she’s the type of beautiful that people spend a lifetime trying to capture across endless rows of canvases and sheets of paper in hopes of doing even an ounce of that beauty justice. So you can imagine the difficulty for someone like me, a person who likes to consider herself somewhat of an artist, to try and resist the gravitational pull of something like that.” 

She went too far. Clarke hadn’t meant to say that much and she can’t look anywhere in Lexa’s direction. She can’t look at Lexa because she knows if she does, there won’t be an ounce of doubt that she had meant every word. Lexa is beautiful and Clarke definitely has never once failed to notice it. 

“Then you take that, factored in with the fact that I spent more hours at the office with Lexa that I did at my own home and you can start to understand how this played out. Long conversations after hours turned into grabbing a drink to unwind from a long day, to having dinner at a nearby restaurant under the light of the stars in the summer breeze, to forgetting what it felt like to spend a night alone and never missing it once. That’s why we are getting married, Mr. Pike.”

She can feel Lexa’s eyes boring holes into the side of her head staring, but instead of looking in her direction and risking giving herself away, Clarke simply reaches over to take Lexa’s hand in hers. Thumb stroking at her knuckles, Clarke ignores the inconvenience of the fire under her skin once again. 

“Well, that’s a lovely story Miss Griffin, but I’m going to warn you right now that I am exceptionally good at what I do. I will be looking for far more than poetic words to convince me this is legitimate. So I will give you one warning now and one only. If this is a ploy to get Miss Woods her Visa granted, I will find out. And there will be consequences for both of you that will not be taken lightly.”

“Understood. I assure you that Clarke and I are sincere in our request and I’m sure you will find sufficient evidence along this process to appease you.”

Clarke should feel nervous that this lie is going to explode in her face. She should be feeling nervous by the way Pike’s words are a direct threat, a challenge that he is on the hunt for a lie, any lie that will tear this ruse wide open. She should be nervous about all of those things, except that she isn’t. Because the only thing she feels coursing through her body is the heat radiating from where her hand is joined with Lexa’s. The only thing she feels is fear that this shouldn’t feel this good. 

\-------------------

Lexa wants to call this whole thing off. She wants to tell Clarke they shouldn’t do this and that she should simply accept her fate and move back to Canada and start over. She lies and tells herself it’s because Pike’s words got to her, that she’s worried he is going to find them out within a week of digging and ruin them both. The lie is easier than the truth. Easier than admitting she let Clarke’s words get to her. Easier than admitting maybe this won’t be as easy to deny anymore the longer they need to carry on this show. It was easy pretending she didn’t feel a pull towards Clarke when she could keep their relationship strictly professional. It’s always easy until it isn’t. 

“Lexa, relax. Your face has been frozen into a frown since we got back home. He isn’t going to find out. We got this.”

“You can’t be certain of that, Clarke. Maybe this was a mistake. This will ruin us both if he finds out.”

“He is not going to find out. Now hurry up and finish packing so we can get some sleep. We leave for Alaska first thing int he morning. We’re going to use the flight to get you brushed up on all things Clarke Griffin so you don’t completely blow it.” 

Lexa’s frown deepens. “That isn’t comforting at all.”

“Come on, lighten up, it was a joke. I’m trying to lighten the mood. Seriously, we will be fine. I’m an amazing actor, in case you couldn’t tell, and you’re a quick study. We. Got. This.”

Actor. Right. Lexa internally scolds herself for feeling even a sliver of disappointment that Clarke’s words had all been for show. She’s alone by choice. She’s alone because love is weakness and she won’t be weak again. 

“I hope you’re right.”

“I like you better with you unwavering confidence.”

“I like you better when you’re afraid of getting fired.”

“Touche.”

Lexa shakes her head and holds back the smirk itching at the corner of her lips. 

“Ok, I think it’s time to attempt to sleep off this day and get ready for an exponentially more stressful weekend ahead in the pits of hell.”

“I hope you’re not writing your own wedding vows because full offense, you really suck at it”  
“My wedding vows will be flawless, Clarke. Make no mistake about that. I am nothing if not a perfectionist.”

“We’ll see about that. Anyway, I’m going to go wash up and I will head to bed in a few.”

Clarke makes her way to the bathroom with pajamas in hand and closes the door behind her. Suddenly, Lexa remembers her earlier moment of panic. She has one bed. One bed and a completely uncomfortable couch not suited for sleeping. 

She quickly changes into a set of pajamas that will cover the most skin and pushes down the nerves bubbling in her stomach. She slips under the blankets just as she hears the door of the bathroom open and close. 

While she may have been searching for a pair of pajamas that cover the most skin, Clarke has clearly decided to inflict a torture worse than death by choosing the opposite approach. A thin tank top with shorts that barely cover the curve of her ass floods Lexa’s vision and her mouth runs dry. 

“Well, I can’t say I ever pictured the day I’d be sharing a bed with my boss who’s mission has been making me hate my job with a fiery passion of a thousand suns.”

“And I can’t say I ever pictured sharing my bed with a blonde who’s wit leaves much to be desired and exponentially raised my eye roll count beyond measure.”

“You’re so romantic”

“I’m a realist.”

“A realist who has no fun.” Clarke slides into the bed beside her and pulls the covers up to her shoulders and Lexa sends a silent thank you to the universe for temporarily alleviating her distraction. 

“I sincerely hope you don’t snore, because if you think you’ve seen me in an unpleasant mood before, that will be nothing compered to what you will be greeted with if I don’t get enough sleep.”

“I guess you’ll just have to find out. Good night, Lexa.”

“Goodnight Clarke.”

Lexa doesn’t make any mention in the morning of the fact that at some point in the night, Clarke had managed to curl herself around Lexa’s sleeping form. She doesn’t make any mention that she didn’t force herself to move. She definitely doesn’t make any mention of the fact it had been the best sleep she’s had in a long time.


	3. Leaving on a Jet Plane

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flying to Alaska, where Lexa is definitely not jealous and Clarke is definitely not crushing.

Clarke, Lexa discovers, is the literal opposite of a morning person. Clarke had muttered some obscenities before finally getting up the third time Lexa had re-entered the room ready to literally drag her out of bed by her feet. Her patience was thin this morning, largely to do with the fact she had unintentionally spent the night spooning with her employee and soon to be fake wife. She was on edge and Clarke was about to spend the day on the receiving end of her misplaced denial.

“Clarke, if we miss this flight it’s going to be bad for the both of us, especially my wallet when I need to purchase another two plane tickets to the middle of nowhere, which I can assure you I would be taking out of your paychecks for being such an infant this morning.”

Clarke stumbles out of the bathroom with a yawn, freshly brushed hair and teeth with a cut off sweater hanging off one shoulder, black tights painted on her legs. Lexa is thankful she enforces a strict dress code at work, because had she been seeing the image before her everyday for two years she would have surely crumbled. There was something oddly seductive about the way Clarke could look so good without even trying. Something Lexa won’t let herself spend another second thinking about. 

“Relax Commander, I’m ready. God, are you always going to be this intense in the morning? It’s 5:30am, it’s criminal and I’m having you arrested.”

“Good, then perhaps you can take someone else with you to wherever the hell it is we’re going in Alaska.”

Clarke rolls her eyes. “Sitka”

“Whatever. It sounds horrendous.”

Clarke takes a moment to let her eyes wonder up and down Lexa’s body. “You do realize we aren’t going into the office today, right? I mean, you look great as always, but I sincerely hope you packed more casual clothes for this trip.”

Lexa looks down at herself. She’s wearing fitted black dress pants with a white button down shirt tucked into the front, arm cuffs rolled up just below the elbow, with a pair of red loafer style flats nestled comfortably on her feet. Normally she would have completed this outfit with a blazer, but this was her attempt at casual. Apparently she failed.

“I’m perfectly capable of packing my own clothes Clarke. Now grab your bags and let’s go. The car is downstairs waiting.”

Lexa reaches down to grab her two suitcases in each hand while throwing her carry on bag onto her shoulder. 

“Woah, how long exactly do you think we’re going for, Lexa? You look like you’ve packed for a month.” Clarke says and she walks past Lexa holding a single carry on sized suitcase. 

“I don’t like being unprepared, and frankly I have no confidence that you’re not taking me out to live in the bush for 4 days so I’ve packed all the essentials.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it. You wouldn’t survive one night in the bush. You’re prime bear bait.”

Clarke is out the door before she finishes her sentence, leaving Lexa to struggle with her bags as she locks the door behind them.  
\-----------------

Check-in goes as smoothly as can be expected when her boss is chirping in her ear every 10 seconds about all of the inefficiencies of the airport and the fact she doesn’t seem to be in a hurry, despite the fact the flight doesn’t leave for another hour and a half. Clarke takes her seat on the plane once they finally get to board, counting down the minutes until she deems it appropriate to order a stiff drink to get her through this trip. 

Lexa follows closely behind and gives Clarke a questioning look when she reaches their aisle. 

“Clarke, isn’t the window seat assigned to you?” 

Clarke turns to take a look at the seat to her left and shrugs. “I thought you might like to sit in the window seat to see the view when we get close. It’s pretty amazing, and I’ve seen it many times.” 

“Oh...that’s...well thank you.”

“Don’t mention it. Plus, you might want to throw yourself out of it once you get sick of hearing me talk because buckle up wifey, we have 10 hours to get you brushed up on all things Clarke Griffin. My family won’t be as easy to fool as others, so you’re going to need to be convincing when pretending you’re completely enamored with me and my many amazing qualities.”

“I hope this morning was a demonstration of the worst, because you’re really quite infuriating in the morning.” Lexa squeezes past Clarke to take her seat, and the proximity to Lexa’s ass as she does makes Clarke’s breath hitch and her palms sweaty. 

“We can’t all be morning people. I’m much more of a night owl. I can go all night.” 

She isn’t sure what possesses her to do it, but she sends a wink in Lexa’s direction and immediately regrets it and looks away. But not before catching the shades of red creep up Lexa’s neck. 

She hears Lexa clear her throat before moving to speak, a silent refusal to acknowledge the comment even long enough to chastise her, and Clarke wonders for a fleeting moment if she feels it too. 

“Well I guess we should start by you telling me a bit about your family and the people I’m going to be trapped with for the next 4 days. Better the devil you know.”

“I think I should take direct offense that you just called my mother the devil, but then again sometimes she can be so I’ll give it a pass.”

“It’s a figure of speech, Clarke.”

“Anyway, Lucifer’s day job is a Do-

“Your sense of humor leaves much to be desired.”

“That’s funny because I swore I saw a smirk tugging at your lips.” 

Lexa rolls her eyes and Clarke continues. She tells Lexa about her mother Abby the doctor, tells her all about Jake, a local businessman with an entrepreneurial flair. She tells her all about her best friend Octavia and her brother Bellamy and the wild stories of their childhood. She talks all about her grandmother, about how she never fails to be the life of the party and make people laugh until they cry. If Lexa is bored with what she’s hearing, she doesn’t show it. She stares at Clarke intently and smiles and nods her head to show she’s engaged. It catches Clarke by surprise, and her nervousness probably makes her talk entirely too much. 

“Wow, I’ve probably just bored you to death with that whole thing. Are you sure you still have enough of an attention span to listen to me talk about myself next or are you searching for the nearest emergency escape door?”

Lexa smiles once again and Clarke melts. Highly inconvenient.

“I’m not bored Clarke. I’ll need to know all of these things, so don’t worry about my entertainment level. Just give me a few minutes to use the washroom and we can pick up with all things Clarke when I get back.” 

Lexa makes her way to the washroom and Clarke finally notices there is someone sitting in the aisle seat beside her to her right. He takes her momentary eye contact as an invitation to start speaking and removes his headphones. 

“Hey, I’m Finn” 

“Clarke” 

Finn reaches out and shakes Clarke’s hand. 

“What sends you to Alaska?”

“I grew up there, going back for a family visit for my grandma’s 70th birthday. What about you?”

“I’m calling it my great adventure. I don’t really have a plan, just needed to take some time away and escape the city life.” 

Lexa reappears and starts making her way back to her seat, eyeing the shaggy haired man with a look Clarke is all to familiar with. She wonders if this look is also the reason Lexa lets her hand linger on Clarke’s shoulder before sitting back down, never failing to remove her glare from Finn. If she didn’t already know this was a fake relationship, she would swear that Lexa was jealous. She won’t let herself linger on that thought for too long because it’s ridiculous and she shouldn’t tread into such territory. 

“Well, I definitely think you’ll find the adventure in Alaska you’re looking for. My entire childhood and teenage years were filled with enough to last me a lifetime. 

Finn smiles at Clarke before making his move. “Maybe we could catch up while you’re there and you could show me the ropes.”

Before Clarke even has a chance to utter a word in response, Lexa leans over so the side of her face is hovering right in front of Clarke’s. So close she can probably feel Clarke’s breath on her cheek. 

“Do you always make a habit of hitting on other people’s fiancé right in front of them, or do I just get the displeasure of being your first attempt?”

Clarke’s eyes widen and she wants to laugh. She wants to laugh so that she doesn’t dwell on the fact that Lexa is jealous. She’s jealous and Clarke wants to eat up every delicious moment and she can’t have that. So she laughs under her breath.

“Oh...OH my god. I’m sorry, I’m an idiot. I didn’t realize. I’m so sorry.”

Lexa is still staring daggers at him and Clarke can’t stop laughing under muffled breaths.

“Sorry Finn I should have warned you, my fiancé over here isn’t good at sharing and also isn’t great at people skills.” Clarke offers an apologetic look towards Finn while scooping up Lexa’s hand into hers to try and calm her annoyance. 

Clarke takes a second to look back towards Lexa who has leaned back into her seat and notices that her glare has shifted away from Finn in favour of staring at their joined hands. 

“God, I’m so sorry again. Don’t mind me, I’m just going to sit here with my headphones and die a little on the inside for the rest of the flight.”

The shaggy haired man quickly puts his headphones back over his ears and Clarke lets out one more laugh. 

“You are seriously one scary jealous girlfriend. I can’t say I’m surprised, but I do find it endlessly amusing.”

Clarke realizes she’s still holding Lexa’s hand in hers, and because she’s feeling brave in the wake of Lexa’s jealously, she decides to test the waters to see how long she can leave it there before Lexa pulls away.

“I’m not jealous” Lexa huffs.

“Oh? Well then what in the hell was that?”

Lexa leans over to ensure Finn has his headphones on and isn’t eavesdropping. 

“I don’t like him and his stupid hair.”

Clarke plasters the biggest grin on her face. This is just too much and she’s going to live in this moment for the rest of the flight. 

“This isn’t funny Clarke.”

“You’re right. It’s hilarious.”

“I don’t do anything halfway so if we’re doing this, I plan to be thorough and convincing, starting with ensuring idiots aren’t trying to pick up my wife.”

A hint of a smile threatens to expose Clarke’s butterflies at Lexa’s free use of the word wife. “Careful not to be too convincing and go falling in love with me. I’m told I’m a handful.”

Clarke notices Lexa stiffen and look back down at their joined hands before quickly pulling her hand away to wipe none existent lint off her pant leg. 

“Somehow I think handful doesn’t even begin to cover it. I’ve lived with you less than 24 hours and I think I’ve gotten my first grey hair.”

Clarke gives Lexa a playful shove of her shoulder, both women’s face lit up with a grin. 

\------------------

They spent a large portion of the rest of the flight talking about Clarke’s love of drawing and how when she was 12 she covered an entire wall in her bedroom with permanent marker sketches while her parents were at work, and though not entirely thrilled with her new canvas choice, her parents couldn’t bring themselves to scold her. They talked about Clarke’s taste in music, though Lexa would argue liking a “little bit of literally everything” is not a preference, to which she earned a scoff in response. Finn remained completely silent and avoiding, which was just the way Lexa liked it.   Lexa had brought along the manuscript she promised Clarke she’d publish as part of their deal and though she really didn’t have to, she decided she would still read it anyway to make sure it wouldn’t be an utter embarrassment assigned to her work reputation. Clarke busied herself watching the in flight movie while sipping on a glass of wine while Lexa opened the pages of “The 100”. She found herself pleasantly surprised when halfway through reading what she was sure was going to be mediocre at best, she was actually enthralled with the world laid out before her. The pages came to life with the effortless marrying of words and drawings, captivating her imagination and wonder. Post apocalyptic sci-fi was hardly a genre she would consider herself a fan of, especially when coupled with graphic novel format, but this was something else. She couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something oddly familiar about one of the characters labeled as “The Commander,” but couldn’t quite place her finger on it. She’s momentarily shaken from her thoughts by the voice beside her.

“I can’t help but notice you haven’t looked away from that manuscript since you started reading it. Is now a good time to say I told you so?”

Lexa glared at Clarke for a moment. She really hates admitting when she’s wrong. 

“Well, it isn’t total shit I’ll give you that.”

“I don’t even think that warrants a thank you. Do you possess a complimentary bone in your body?”

“Tests were inconclusive.”

“Hold up everyone, push pause on your in flight entertainment, we’ve got ourselves a comedian over here” Clarke responds, her arm up in the air and her voice raised loud enough to cause a few turned heads.

Lexa shakes her head and furrows her brow. “Please tell me we’re almost there.”

Before Clarke can answer the seat belt light turns on and the captain comes over the intercom to announce their descent. 

They wait at the baggage claim for Lexa’s luggage while Clarke spends the majority of that time lecturing her regarding her excessive packing. She’s able to tune her out relatively well, a skill she is fairly certain she is going to need in order to make it out of this marriage alive. 

They walk towards the exit but before they reach the doors, Clarke quickly pulls Lexa aside. 

“Ok so my dad is picking us up and while I’ve told him and my mom we’re a couple now, they don’t know we’re getting married. So don’t say anything about that part until I figure out the best way to drop that bomb. Follow my lead, ok?”

Lexa nods in repose. She’s suddenly filled with nerves at the prospect of meeting Clarke’s family. It’s been a long time since she’s had to try and impress anyone, and it’s been an equally long time since she’s had anything resembling a family.

“Ok now give me one of your bags so I can pretend I’m a gentlelady and take my hand and let’s do this.”

Lexa does as she’s told, still not uttering a word as they walk through the exit doors. She spots Clarke’s father immediately. Not because there’s a strong resemblance per-say, but rather because he is holding an embarrassingly large sign that reads “Clarke Griffin’s #1 fan.”

“Oh my god Dad why.” Clarke utters with a smile as she momentarily lets go of Lexa’s hand to give Jake a hug.

“I missed ya baby girl! This is what happens when you’re away too long. I resort to public embarrassment to discourage a repeat.”

Clarke lets go of the hug before turning to Lexa. “Dad, this is Lexa. Lexa, this is Jake Griffin, simultaneously the best and most embarrassing father in the world.”

Lexa extends her hand towards Jake. “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Griffin.”

Instead of extending his hand in return, Jake wraps Lexa up into a hug, her arms frozen at her side. 

“It’s Jake to you, and you’re getting a hug. It’s about time she brought someone home to meet the family. I was beginning to worry she’d enter spinster territory with that hideous bald cat of hers.”

Clarke lets out a loud groan. “I take it back. You’re not the best dad in the world, just the most embarassing.”

Jake releases Lexa from the hug and she’s still caught more than a little off guard with the gesture. Jake picks up her bags and begins walking towards the car while chuckling to himself at Clarke’s annoyance. 

“Yea, I guess I should have warned you my dad is a hugger and not one for subtleties.”

“Probably would have been good to know, but it’s fine. I’m surprised that he seems so welcoming though, I must say. Because I can’t imagine he’s heard the most flattering stories about me.” 

“My dad is all about making opinions for himself, so you basically get a free pass unless you prove otherwise. My mother, however, won’t be as easy. Fair warning.”

“Noted.”

They hear Jake yelling out in the distance, causing both their heads to turn in his direction. 

“Let’s get going ladies, we’ve got a surprise waiting for you at home!”

\----------------  
As they drive through the small town Lexa stares curiously out the window at the small shops that span the street. She furrows her brow once she starts looking a little closer at the names. _Griffin’s Hardware, Griffin’s pharmacy, Griffin’s Grocers._

She gives Clarke a look, who is sitting in the backseat beside her. 

Queitly she leans in beside the blondes ear. “Clarke, when you said your dad was a businessman, you didn’t mentioned he owned the entire town.”

“It never came up”

“Probably because I didn’t have a reason to ask. What else am I going to discover? Do you live on a private island in a mansion too?”

Clarke makes a face and rolls her eyes up towards the sky and turns her head. Lexa is about to demand clarification when the car comes to a stop. 

“Alright here we are! I’ll help you with your bags Lexa so don’t worry. Clarke, be a doll and start the boat for me would ya?”

Jake tosses Clarke the keys and Lexa realizes they are at a marina. 

“Do you seriously live on an island, Clarke?”

“Something like that.” 

Clarke grabs her bag and starts walking down the dock towards a boat that looks as though it costs as much as Lexa’s yearly salary. 

“Clarke...” Lexa calls out. Clarke keeps walking. “CLARKE!”

The blonde turns her head around and raises an eyebrow in question. 

“I’m not getting on that boat. I can’t swim.”

“Hence the boat, Lexa. We weren’t planning to make you swim there.”

Jake comes strolling up behind her, bags in tow. 

“Not to fear Lex, your girl here was a lifeguard all through senior year of high school. She’s got us covered.”

She doesn’t find any comfort in that fact in this moment, and sits stiff in her seat the entire way there, her stomach taking up residence in her throat. She catches Clarke shoot her a few smirks periodically and reminds herself to scold her later for finding enjoyment in this less than ideal moment.

When they pull up to the dock, Lexa can hardly keep her eyes from bulging. To call the house massive would be selling it short. It looks like something out of a magazine, gorgeous gardens and trees cover the property. She wonders how the fact that Clarke’s family was clearly extremely well off never came up, or why, for that matter, Clarke would work as her assistant for two years with a salary someone accustomed to this lifestyle would laugh at. 

Jake is halfway to the house while Lexa still stood frozen on the dock. 

“You never mentioned your family was the Donald Trump of Sitka”

“First of all, ew. No Trump talk in these parts. And second, it’s because I don’t like to advertise it because it doesn’t matter. It’s not who I am and I don’t like people making assumptions about me based on the fact my parents are well off. I live my own life independently from them and I’ve worked my ass off to do it.”

“You’re right, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be making such a big deal out of this. I was just caught a little off guard, is all.”

Lexa catches Clarke’s face soften. “It’s fine, most people would react the same way. But how about we pick that jaw up off the floor and make our grand entrance, future Mrs. Griffin.”

“No. Mrs. Woods.”

“Griffin-Woods”

“Why is Griffin first?”

“Alphabetical order. I don’t make the rules.”

Lexa rolls her eyes for probably the thousandth time since Clarke came into her life two years ago. She starts following Clarke up towards the house while thinking that this is going to be an interesting four days.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be full of Griffin family shenanigans. As always, any mistakes are on me and I'm still living in 307 denial where lesbians are alive and well and made of bulletproof skin.


	4. The Gay Ass Cat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> From the words of Justin Bieber - is it too late now to say sorry? This chapter is so much later than I meant it to be. I decided to make this one a little bit shorter because I am still working on getting the next part the way I want it, and it's going to be super long so I decided to break it up.
> 
> As always, thoughts, comments and pitchforks welcomed.

The quiet homecoming Clarke was hoping for was quickly squashed once they opened the front door of the house to a loud booming of “surprise” being shouted from no less than 50 people. A surprise party. Clarke should have known this wasn’t going to be simple. Not only did she have to figure out a way to announce she’s marrying Lexa to her family, but now has to do it in front of practically half the town. She doesn’t even need to look towards Lexa to know what expression will be forced upon her face. 

Clarke waves to everyone with a forcedsmile on her face and a quick “thank you” before quietly, almost under her breath in Lexa’s ear, pleads innocence. “Before you say anything, I swear I had no idea we were going to have a welcoming brigade waiting for us.”

Lexa doesn’t have time to answer with more than a side eye glare before Jake quickly reappears. 

“Before you both get mobbed by everyone dying to see you, let’s get your stuff to your room” Jake says while picking Lexa’s bags back up off the floor. 

Clarke gives a quick wave to the crowd before following her father down the familiar hallway, Lexa close behind. The nostalgia hits her as they pass endless rows of picture frames that contain memories she both misses and hates all at once. Photos of her family when she was young and carefree, wild blonde hair always askew. Photos on her as a teenager, forcing a smile for family photos standing beside a mother who became impossible to please once she realized Clarke was never going to simply give in to following anyone else’s dreams but her own. 

Sometimes, when she gets a moment of peace to relax amidst her chaotic life in New York, she misses the place that she used to call home. But staying here would have been like being a bird trapped in a cage, and ever since she was a young girl, Clarke knew her wild spirit could never be caged. There was something deep within her that needed to be free, passions that demanded release.   
Clarke is so preoccupied with her thoughts that she almost fails to notice the way Lexa also studies the photos as they walk down the hallway. A curious look on her face as she takes it all in, and suddenly Clarke wonders what Lexa’s wall of photos would look like and wonders if she’ll ever get to see them. 

They reach the last room on the right of the hallway and Jake opens the door and sets their bags down. 

“Alright kiddos this one’s yours for the weekend!”

“Who’s room is this one?” Clarke asks, fairly certain her mother would rather have her sleep on the boat than share a room with a girlfriend. The look on Lexa’s face tells Clarke she was also hoping for separate rooms for this trip. 

“It’s both of yours” Jake replies.

Clarke gives him a look with a raised eyebrow. “You’re telling me that mom is actually allowing us to share a room? That sounds like the literal opposite of anything she’d ever agree to.” 

“Please, Clarke. You’re adults and your mother and I are well passed the old school traditions. I’m totally hip with the times.” Jake makes a pistol motion with both hands as he finishes his sentence and Clarke rolls her eyes. 

“Let me guess, all the other rooms are occupied by Griffin family gong show that’s in the living room right now and she had no other choice” Clarke’s sarcasm dripping off every word. 

Jake chuckles, “busted. But for the sake of making the best out of the situation let’s all just pretend it was the first option, yea?”

“Fine” Clarke huffs. 

“Great! Now let’s get you ladies to the party since you’re the guests of honor” Jake says as he claps his hands together. 

“Ok, we’ll meet you out there in a few minutes Dad” Clarke replies as she follows Jake to close the door behind him. 

She turns to face Lexa, who’s now sitting at the edge of the bed. 

“Sorry again about all of this. I seriously wasn’t expecting this level of craziness.” 

“It’s fine, Clarke. It’s only a few days, I’m sure I will survive.” Lexa says, hands resting on top of her crossed legs. 

“Oh I wouldn’t go counting on your survival just yet. You haven’t met my mother.”

“Clarke, I have handled business men and women of all levels and varying degrees of difficulty. I think I can handle a mother in-law.”

Those words do weird things to Clarke’s stomach instantly. The way Lexa says mother in-law so matter of fact and like it’s no big deal makes her have to remind herself a little harder that this is just for show. It’s not something she can afford to forget. 

She clears her throat before responding. “Alright then. I guess there’s no time like the present to get this show on the road.” 

Clarke extends a hand towards Lexa, which she takes in hers as she stands. 

“Lead the way to this Griffin family gong show, as you put it.” Lexa says as they start towards the bedroom door. 

They barely make it to the end of the hallway before Abby appears in front of the pair with drinks in hand. 

“Clarke, honey, welcome home!” Abby says, as she plants a kiss on Clarke’s cheek. 

“Hey mom. This is Lexa, Lexa this is Abby.” Clarke takes the drinks out of Abby’s hands as she finishes and takes a big swig out of one. 

Lexa extends her hand towards Abby. “It’s great to meet you Mrs. Griffin. I’ve heard a lot about you.”  Abby reaches forward to shake Lexa’s hand while eyeing her suspiciously. Clarke doesn’t like the looks of this at all. Though not entirely unexpected. 

“I’ve heard a lot about you as well. Though while I’d love to say all good things, I’m not one to get into the habit of lying.”

Lexa’s raises an eyebrow and Clarke is quick to cut in before she utters a surely annoyed response. 

“Mom!”

“What honey? I’m just saying. You leave Alaska to be a book editor, only to end up working as an assistant for two years for someone who works you to your grave who you sound like you hate, and now all of a sudden I’m supposed to buy into this notion that you’re in love?” 

Clarke scoffs. “You don’t have to ‘buy’ into any notion, mom. I’m well aware of your disappointment in my life decisions and frankly, my love life is none of your concern. And I’ll have you know that not only am I in love, but I’m getting married. Lexa and I are engaged”

Abby’s mouth opens in surprise, just as words start to form at the tips of her lips Clarke interjects once again. 

“Now if you’ll excuse us, there’s others here I’d like to say hello to.” Clarke passes the extra drink in her hand to Lexa, who she figures is going to need it. She places a hand on the small of Lexa’s back and guides her towards the living room. 

They don’t make it more than five steps away from Abby before Lexa is taking a big swig of her drink and muttering “This is my nightmare.” 

“Well this isn’t exactly my fantasy either, Lexa.”

“You could have warned me your mother was so...charming.” 

“Actually, that’s exactly what I did. I warned you she was going to make this feel like you’re auditioning for a season of Survivor, miss ‘please Clarke I can handle a simple mother in-law’ Woods.”

Lexa rolls her eyes. “And what happened to waiting for the right time to tell them we are engaged? That was hardly what I expected as the right time.”

Clarke takes another swig of her drink. She is fairly certain it’s not nearly strong enough and she’s too sober for this shit storm. “Well, it just came out. She gets under my skin and I just blurted it out.” She sees Lexa giving her a questioning glare. “Stop giving me your judging eyes.”

Lexa let’s out a sigh before rubbing her temples with her fingers. “We really need to stop this bickering bickerson routine if we are going to try and convince people we are in love.” 

“ Oh, I can do that, no problem. I can be the sweet, doting fiancé. It’s you I’m worried about.” Clarke says, pointing a finger towards Lexa’s face.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means that’s going to involve you pretending you have more of an emotional range than a robot.”

Lexa huffs and downs the rest of her drink in one swift motion and places it on the nearest table. “You underestimate my abilities to get what I want, Clarke.”

She knows she shouldn’t ask it, but she can’t help herself. Maybe it’s a little bit of leftover arguing she needs to get out of her system, or maybe it’s a little bit of her bad habit of playing with fire, but the alcohol is starting to warm her veins and loosen her brain’s hold on her mouth and it’s out before she can change her mind. 

“And what is it you want, Lexa?” 

I comes out far more low and sultry that she intended. Or maybe it came out exactly as intended, but those are thoughts she’s not about to dwell on. Not when Lexa’s eyes grow darker and her lip curls into a smirk. Not when she’s inching closer to her face and making Clarke catch her breath in her throat. 

Her lips are inches away from Clarke’s ear, hot breath sending shivers down her neck. Lexa barely gets a syllable out of her mouth to speak when there’s a loud, very recognizable voice snapping Clarke our of her daze. 

“BITCH YOU’RE GETTING MARRIED?!” 

Lexa jumps back and Clarke curses. 

“Fuck, Octavia! Could you maybe yell it a little louder for Ethel in the back, I don’t think she has her hearing aid in.” 

Octavia is now standing in front of the pair, arms crossed and eyebrow up like she knows there is more to this story than Clarke is letting on. In retrospect, she figures she probably should have warned her before they arrived.

“Clarke, what in the holy hell is going on? Care to fill a girl in?” She pauses briefly to look at Lexa. “By the way, I’m Octavia, Clarke’s now ex-best friend. I assume judging by the fact you look like that-” she gestures her hand up and down Lexa’s body while shaking her hand awkwardly in front of her face to finish it off - “you must be Lexa?”

Lexa extends her arm to shake Octavia’s hand. “I am. It’s nice to meet you.”

Clarke cuts in muttering a “be right back” towards Octavia and grabs Lexa’s hand and drags her towards the middle of the living room where eyes have already started to stare in their direction. “Sorry to break up the meet and greet but the gay ass cat is out of the bag so we might as well just get this over with.” 

Before Lexa can ask Clarke what exactly she’s about to do, she’s taking a glass in her hand and banging it with a fork. 

“Ladies, Gentleman, that creepy blonde dude in the back over there I’ve never seen before in my life with a fist full of desserts, I have something important I’d like to announce.”

All eyes are on Lexa and Clarke and Lexa’s eyes bulge. She grips Clarke’s still joined hand tighter. 

“As I assume some of you have started overhearing, this is Lexa Woods, and her and I are engaged. I’m getting married.”

The crowd starts cheering and clapping, and all of a sudden a loud voice in the background yells “KISS! KISS!” 

Clarke glances behind her shoulder at the source of the voice. The creepy blonde dude is still yelling as he continues to simultaneously pile desserts into his mouth. His yelling has seemed to get the crowd going as more of Clarke’s friends and family start joining in. Another voice cuts in from beside her. 

“Yea Clarke, let’s see you lay one on that gorgeous fiancé of yours.” Octavia says, a shit eating grin on her face. 

Clarke knows she will have to answer to Octavia later, but for now she needs to deal with this mess. She knew this was coming. This was part of the deal, pretending to be a couple would involve couple-y things. Like the occasional public display of affection. No big deal. 

Clarke turns to face Lexa, who’s expression is strangely unreadable. She’s got one hell of a poker face, and Clarke takes it as a personal challenge to wipe it off her face just to prove she’s better at this game than Lexa. It’s not necessarily that this is a competition, but if it was, Clarke’s competitive nature is intent on winning.

She places a gentle hand at the back of Lexa’s neck and tangles it in her long brown locks. She inches forward slowly and with purpose, licking her bottom lip slightly while staring into Green eyes. She pauses for a moment an inch away from Lexa’s lips, letting their noses bump together. She inhales one final breath before closing the distance and taking Lexa’s bottom lip between her own. 

She had every intention of stopping there, just a quick kiss to please the nosey crowd and get their announcement over with. Only as soon as their lips met, she needed a little bit more. She needed her tongue to taste Lexa’s lip balm as she dragged it across her lower lip. She needed to feel what Lexa’s lips felt like between her teeth. And though she didn’t know she needed it before it happened, she most definitely needed to hear the quiet, barely audible moan that escaped Lexa’s throat. 

A loud whistle from the crowd suddenly breaks the spell she’s under and Clarke pulls back. Her body is on fire and she shouldn’t have done that. Lexa is staring at her, breathing heavily, and she really shouldn’t have done that. 

The stunned look plastered across Lexa’s face tells Clarke that she’s won this round, but the heavy feeling in the pit of her stomach tells her she’s already lost the game.


End file.
